Level Rising: Dark Times
by Copper Thrice
Summary: Takes place almost a year after Level Rising. Jake Parion and his friends must battle an ancient evil that threatens the world. Can this duelist succeed against the odds, or fall into Darkness? New Chapter after Announcement. Complete!
1. Chapter 1: Things Change

Hi, this is Copper. I'm still kinda new at writing fanfics, but since Level Rising was a slight hit, I've decided to ship the sequel. If you want to read the first story, click my profile name. Enjoy!

* * *

Level Rising: Dark Times

By Copper Thrice

Chapter 1: Things Change

Almost a year ago, Duel Academy hosted a tournament called the GX tournament.

At that time, the Academy was practically invaded by a group called the Society of Light.

The Society defeated students at the Academy in duels and brainwashed them into servants of the DarkLight.

During this time a boy named Jake Parion, a boy who had failed the Academy entrance exam, fought his way through the duels to rescue his old friend Ellie Watcher. She had been brainwashed by Saartorius, an evil servant of the DarkLight, and she had become another Society puppet.

Jake faced her in a duel and won by the skin of his teeth, freeing Ellie.

However, a few days after their reunion, Jake had to say goodbye. He had been chosen recently by the Level Monsters, powerful creatures who spirits now resided in his Duel Monsters deck. Because of this, Jake had to prepare for the coming of a new evil force that threatened existence.

* * *

Many months later…

Breathing heavily, a boy in his mid teens wearing a duel disk ran down the streets of Italy's grand city, Rome.

The boy turned around to see the six men who were pursuing him gain ground on him.

"Crud," he thought gritting his teeth, "Not good."

One of the men pulled out a pistol and aimed it at the boy.

"Oh, man," thought the boy as he ducked into an alleyway. At the end of the alley was a chain-link fence. The boy quickly scrambled over it. As he fell to the other side, a bullet whizzed by him, then a second shot by him.

As he tuned around a corner, his left arm was behind him and he felt a bullet impact nearby. Silently muttering surprise, he pulled his arm forward.

"Great," he said aloud, "Just great." His duel disk was old and given to him for the GX tournament. Now, instead of a loss of paint on it, it was missing a chunk because of a bullet hole.

"Well," the boy said trying to turn on the disk to no avail, "least it didn't get my arm."

Then he heard the men chasing him climb the chain-link fence in the alley.

The boy turned to see that he was in a new alley and this one was closed off by a brick wall.

"Aw, C'mon," he yelled frustrated. Then he bit his lip and turned to the corner where the men would soon be coming. "Guess its time to try out the Crystal." He said.

The boy took a deep breath and pulled a palm-sized clear crystal out of his pocket. He held it out to his side and said, "Spirit Crystal… ACCESS!" He slapped the clear crystal onto his arm and it changed shape.

The crystal grew around his arm and formed into a gauntlet. It then expanded and took the shape of a crystallized Duel Disk system, complete with LP gauge, deck slot, and graveyard slot.

"Whoa," said the boy, "Marik was right," he grinned, "This IS pretty cool." He faced forward and the men who chased him stood right in front of him, the one with the gun smiled cockily.

"Hey, brat," the man said aiming his gun, "Give us the crystal and we'll end you quickly."

The boy grinned broader and reached for his deck box on his hip. The crystal disk spread a wing-like crystal monster summoning area.

"Let's get this clear for your boss." Said the boy, "My name's not 'brat'…"

A card jumped to his hand as he opened the deck box and the boy slapped the card onto the crystal wing and the wing shone brightly in the dim alley. The assailants were blinded.

"The name's Jake, Jake Parion!"

Immediately, a five foot, violet-armored warrior with sheathed twin swords and a long helmet appeared from the light.

"Meet Mystic Swordsman LV 3." Said Jake, then he pointed at the men, "Go!"

The Swordsman lifted his covered face and jumped high into the air. He came down and kneed one of the men. Using the man as a springboard, he roundhouse kicked two others.

Faster than Jake could see, the warrior stepped in front of two men and elbowed them in the gut, prior to pulling his arms up and punching them in their faces.

The last man pulled out his gun, a scared expression on his face.

He fired.

The warrior held up his hand

The warrior stood still for a moment and then turned to the man with a clenched fist.

The Swordsman opened his hand and the flattened bullet fell out of it.

It fell to the ground with a clink.

The Swordsman pulled out one of his swords and quickly slashed at the man.

Everyone watched as the man's gun fell into two pieces.

The man yelled then he and his bruised companions ran out of the alley, stumbling as they ran.

Jake chuckled. "Nice job, Mystic," he said.

The swordsman sheathed his sword and took a proud stance.

"I have a love for the dramatic," the warrior said, then he put his hands to his hips, "well, thanks for the workout, but its time to go. Later!"

The Swordsman faded into light and disappeared.

Jake grinned and shook his head. Then he put his deck back in the hip-box.

The crystal returned to its original form.

Jake threw it into the air and caught it.

* * *

Jake walked out of the alley and a motorcycle sped up to and parked in front of him.

The rider was very tall man who wore a leather outfit and a helmet.

The man took off his helmet and his dark skin and face scarred with Ancient Egyptian symbols.

"Ready to leave, Master Jake," said the man in a deep voice.

"Yeah," said Jake, "Let's not keep Marik waiting, Odion," Jake put on his helmet and sat behind Odion, "but man this crystal thing's awesome!"

Odion nodded, put on his helmet and the two sped off out of the city.

* * *

Well, what do you think? I'm trying pretty hard on this new story. Hope you liked it.

Don't worry, there's an actual duel in the next chapter. Just wait for it!

-Copper


	2. Chapter 2: Ellie

_Level Rising: Dark Times_

_By Copper Thrice_

It was a typical day at the island school of Duel Academy.

The sun was shining.

A breeze drifted through the island's trees.

However, two duelists were becoming more focused on their dawning duel than the weather.

One was a female student with auburn hair. She wore the blue and white uniform of an Obelisk Blue dorm student. Her name was Ellie Watcher.

Her opponent was an Obelisk Blue student named Fred "Falcon" Malon. He slicked back his hair saying it was aerodynamic and he had the personality of a bird of prey.

"You ready to lose, Watcher?" Falcon yelled over to his opponent.

Ellie just smiled and said, "I could ask you the same, but why waste time trash-talking…"

"DUEL!" the two shouted simultaneously.

**Ellie: 4000**

**Falcon: 4000**

"I'll start," said Falcon drawing is hand. He grinned. "I summon my Harpie's Brother (1800/600)! Then I activate my Field Spell card: Mountains!"

A hologram of a man in black armor with spiky black hair slicked back (Not too different from Falcon's). On his back was a pair of red wings and he held a red scimitar-like sword.

Then, surrounding both duelists, a series of small mountain ranges popped up.

Ellie took a look to the holograms that sprouted up. She was constantly amazed at the detail that KaibaCorp put into their products.

"The field spell that I played causes my monster to raise his attack and defense by 200 points!" explained Falcon, "And it'll do the same for my other bird or winged beast monsters as well!"

Harpie's Brother: 2000/ 800

"Got it," said Ellie, "My turn!" Ellie drew a card from her deck. "I play a monster called D. D. Assailant!" (1700/1600)

A female warrior with short blonde hair, wearing silver armor and carrying a large, cleaver-like sword appeared. Upon appearing, it crouched down with its sword behind it.

"Next, I'll play the spell card Rush Recklessly! It increases my monsters attack by 700 points for my turn!" Ellie played her card and her monster faced forward. A determined look spread across its holographic face.

D.D. Assailant: 2400/1600

"Go," yelled Ellie pointing at the enemy monster, "Attack!"

The Assailant stood and ran forward. The red-winged monster held up its sword to defend himself, but then the Assailant disappeared.

"What the---," Said Falcon, "Where'd it go?"

Suddenly, the Assailant appeared behind Harpie's Brother. It's huge sword high in the air. Before the winged monster could turn around, the blade had already been brought down.

Harpie's Brother disintegrated into holographic bits and Falcon took Life Point damage.

**Ellie: 4000**

**Falcon: 3600**

Falcon grit his teeth as his monster faded. He had to think up a new strategy and fast!

"I'll end my turn there!" yelled Ellie as her monster rejoined her on her side of the field.

"Fine!" said Falcon drawing. "I'll play my Birdface (1600/1600) in Attack mode!"

A hologram of a humanoid monster appeared. It had the head of a bird of prey and tan wings instead of arms.

"Next, I'll equip him with my Horn of the Unicorn equip spell," Falcon grinned, "That boosts his attack and defense by 700 points. Then I add in the Field bonus he gains from the mountains!"

A twisted, golden horn grew on top of Birdface's head. Birdface then gave a loud screech before setting himself down on one of the miniature mountains.

Birdface: 2500/2300

"Alright, now, Birdface," said Falcon, "Attack her D.D. Assailant!"

The monster jumped high into the air above the Assailant. The silver-clad warrior held her sword behind her and jumped up to meet her foe.

"Ha," said Falcon, "Since your monster doesn't have its power bonus anymore, my monster will make short work of it!"

Before the two monsters could meet, Birdface twisted off to the side using its wings. As the Assailant turned to try to counter, Birdface used its new power to conjure a lightning blast from its mouth.

The attack hit the Assailant square in the chest and it fell, head first, down towards the arena.

**Ellie: 3100**

**Falcon: 3600**

"Yeah, that's how it's…" Falcon said as he turned to Ellie, who bore a small grin, "What're you grinning about?"

"Well," said Ellie, "I'm not too happy about my monster getting beat, but…" Ellie pointed up. Falcon's eyes followed.

The Assailant twisted in mid air and opened a rift in the air with her cleaver sword between her and Falcon's monster. Soon she was sucked into the rift.

With a screech, Birdface tried to escape, but then it too was dragged into the rift.

The rift sealed the instant the monsters were sucked in.

"Wha… What the…" Falcon said surprised.

"You see," Ellie began crossing her arms and grinning broadly, "When my D.D.Assailant gets destroyed in combat, it leaves the field of play and takes its attacker with it. My turn?"

Falcon nodded.

"Okay," Ellie drew her card, "I'll summon my Getsu Fuhma!" (1700/1300)

A woman with long red hair, wearing samurai armor appeared. At her side was a long katana.

"Oh, and then I'll play the spell card Graceful Charity. It allows me to draw three cards as long as I discard two afterwards." Ellie drew her cards and then discarded some from her hand. "Next, I'll play Monster Reborn! It allows me to take a monster from my graveyard and play it on the field."

"But you don't have a monster in your graveyard!" yelled Falcon.

Ellie rolled her eyes, "I just discarded two cards from my hand and what do ya know… ones a monster. I revive my Command Knight!" (1200/1900)

A royal-looking woman wearing shiny, red armor appeared. She took her place on the field next to Getsu Fuhma.

"Oh, and let's not forget her special ability," said Ellie, "As long as my new monster's on the field, all of my warrior monsters, including herself, gain a 400 attack point boost!"

Getsu Fuhma: 2100/1300

Command Knight: 1600/1900

"Now," Ellie said pointing at the defenseless Falcon, "Attack together!"

The knight and the samurai woman drew their swords and hopped between the mountain peaks towards Falcon.

Falcon gulped as the holograms stood in front of him, swords up high.

In an instant it was all over.

**Ellie: 3100**

**Falcon: 0000**

The holograms on the duel area faded and Ellie turned to leave.

"Later, Fred," she said, "Thanks for the practice!"

"My name's Falcon!" the defeated duelist yelled.

"Whatever!" Ellie yelled back.

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Ellie walked into the Duel Academy Cafeteria and grabbed a soda at the Food Stand.

She paid for it and sat at one of the tables. She sighed and slid off her duel disk.

As she began to unwind an old friend sat across from her.

"Hey, Ellie," The female Obelisk Blue student said as she sat at the table.

"Oh, hey, Alexis," said Ellie. "How's it goin?"

"Oh, just fine," Alexis said, "You?"

"Just a little bored," Ellie said before taking a drink. "How's your boyfriend?"

"Ask him yourself," said a male Obelisk Blue student sitting down next to Alexis.

"Oh, hey, Jaden," said Ellie, "How's the new uniform working for you?"

"Can't complain," he said, a grin on his face, "It was the least that Shepherd could do since I won that last tournament."

"Hey, Jaden, right?" asked a Slifer Red student walking up to the table.

"What is it," Jaden said aggravated. His grin faded.

"Uhm, could you duel me for practice," the boy asked, "I'd like to see how a real duelist plays."

"I don't think so," said Jaden, "I'm not dueling outside of Tourneys right now. Just run along, kid."

The boy looked disappointed and left. As he walked away, some other Slifer students (who might've been his friends) met up with him.

"Told you he would shut you down," said one boy.

"Yeah, he's been a real jerk since he got a big head from all those tournaments and all the gifts Shepherd gave him." Said another boy

"Yeah, like that promotion to Obelisk dorm." Said the first boy.

"Hmph," Jaden muttered as he rose from his seat. "See ya later, Lex."

"Yeah…" said Alexis as Jaden left.

Ellie sighed, "Man, he used to be so cool as a Slifer Red."

"Yeah, no wonder the NeoSpacians left him…" said Alexis.

"What was that?" asked Ellie.

"Oh, nothing…" Alexis said with a sigh, "I gotta go…" Alexis rose and left.

Ellie watched as her friend left and took a sip of her soda.

"I wonder how Jake's doing…" she thought.

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Well, that's chapter 2 for ya. I've got a real epic planned out, though so stick around!

-Copper Thrice


	3. Chapter 3: Kaiba Corp Challenge

Level Rising: Dark Times

By Copper Thrice

Chapter 3

The motorcycle sped out of Rome and onto the outskirts of the famous town. Along old, gravel roads Jake watched the scenery pass by.

He'd wanted to visit a foreign country for a while now.

He just wished it was because of a vacation or school trip not…

The motorcycle turned and stopped near a cave that opened into a large, rocky hill.

"We're here," Odion said as he stepped off the bike and pulled of his helmet.

"Yeah," said Jake taking off his helmet and working the kinks out of his back.

The two dragged the bike off to the side and hid it amongst some brush. Then they entered the cave.

After walking for a few minutes, they came to a torch-lit hollow in the cave. Inside they found the dark-skinned, Egyptian siblings, Marik and Ishizu. The two of them had been Gravekeepers for an ancient, powerful pharaoh a few years back. Now they were free of their family's duty and had recently come to the aid of Jake.

"Ah, Odion, Jake, you're back," said Marik, looking up from an ancient scroll.

"It is good to see that you are well," Ishizu said rising from her seat. "I had sensed trouble in the city."

"Where's your duel disk?" asked Marik looking at Jake's arm.

"Oh, it got shot and I had to toss it," said Jake sitting down.

"Again?" asked Marik, "Didn't that happen to your last disk a month ago."

"Yeah, these Saar-Kel guys are dangerous," said Jake leaning back. Then he sighed. "Saar-Kel," he thought, "An organization that's only apparent purpose is to make my task tougher."

"Did keep you from obtaining the crystal?" Ishizu asked.

"Nope, got it right here," Jake held up the clear crystal. Ishizu's eyes widened a bit.

"It is good that you have obtained it," She said, "May I see it?"

"Sure," Jake said. Ishizu carefully picked up the crystal and set it down on her make-shift table. She held her hands above the crystal and began to recite an ancient spell.

The crystal lifted into the air a few inches above the table and gave off a faint glimmer.

Ishizu closed her eyes and remained silent as she probed the crystal with her mind.

"I hope you don't mind me saying this, but…" said Jake to Marik, "Your sister's kinda weird."

Marik chuckled and crossed his arms. "Trust me, this is probably the least weird thing you'll see while you're with us."

"Ah," said Jake.

It was a good thing that Jake had met Ishizu, Marik, and Odion. They had met a few weeks after Jake had played in the GX tournament.

Jake had gone to KaibaCorp headquarters in Japan with in order to secure a flight to Rome. While there he had his first run-in with Saar-Kel…

* * *

A few months ago…

"Woah," Jake thought as he saw the massive KC Tower.

"Are you coming or what," Asked Cain Derrel, Jake's unofficial guardian and KaibaCorp businessman. Cain was a stout man, who almost always wore a suit and tie. Despite his tough demeanor, Jake and Cain had gotten along quite well during the past few weeks. In fact, it was because of Cain that Jake even entered the GX tournament. The result of Jake's victories in the tournament had actually improved Cain's standings in KaibaCorp and the two had actually gotten invited to the KC headquarters.

"Are we really meeting Seto Kaiba in person?" asked Jake.

Cain nodded, "This really is an honor for any KaibaCorp worker or…" Cain grinned at Jake, "Representative. He does want to speak with you, though."

"Oh," said Jake enthusiastically.

"I also sent in my report on what you told me about the monsters," Cain lifted his shoulders. "I only mentioned it in my original report, but then Mr. Kaiba wanted any details about your 'monster stories' and, well, I asked you about them on the copter and sent him that."

"Oh," Jake said less enthusiastically

* * *

.

The two met with the receptionist and then took an elevator to the 30th floor of the Tower. Mr. Kaiba's office was on the top below the roof.

When Jake stepped out of the elevator, he didn't know what to expect out of Mr. Kaiba.

What he saw was a guy, about four or five years older than Jake, sitting at a large desk wearing a white suit and reading from a small book. His hair was brown and combed back and he had a greater-than-thou demeanor.

As the two walked into the room, Seto looked up and set down his book.

"I see you have arrived," Seto said sitting up in his chair and laying his hands in front of him.

"Mr. Kaiba, sir," said Cain, "It's an honor to meet you in person."

Seto turned to Cain, "You picked a good candidate for the tournament, Derrel. You may leave." He said coldly.

Cain opened his mouth to say more, he was obviously disappointed that he couldn't stay.

Seto glanced at Cain, who got the hint, nodded, and left.

"Sit down," said Seto motioning towards a chair near his desk.

Jake nodded and sat down.

"You've done pretty well for yourself," said Seto, "You may not have won the tournament, but considering you once failed the Duel Academy entry exam… It's a major improvement."

"Uhm, thank you… sir," Jake added.

"However, what I want to talk to you about now are the strange things that have been going on at MY academy." Said Seto, "I've gotten Shepherd and Derrel's stories, but you actually dueled at the time and Derrel mentioned monsters were involved. Tell me what happened with you."

"You'll, uh," started Jake, "Probably think I'm nuts."

"Try me," Seto replied.

And so, Jake described his little adventure through the GX tournament. Seto sat, giving Jake his attention.

When Jake finished, Seto left his chair and stood in front his office's huge window. A few moments later, he spoke again.

"A few years back, I would have dismissed your story as nonsense, but…" Seto turned to Jake, "Things have been happening in the last few years that help to change my mind."

Seto sighed, "The finding of the Beast-Emperor cards and the Society of Light are only recent events. You see—"

Suddenly, Seto was interrupted by the sound of the elevator door opening. Jake turned to see a man wearing a dark blue cloak and top hat, enter the office.

"Who're you and how did you get in here?" asked Seto coldly.

"My name is of no importance," said the man, "I am a Messenger of the Saar-Kel."

"I'll ask once again," said Seto taking a few, fearless steps towards the man. "How did you get in here? I'm pretty sure I told the receptionist to keep out riffraff like you."

"It does not matter how I came," said the Messenger, "I have come to deliver a message…" He pointed at Jake, "To you."

Jake was immediately confused. "Wha?"

The Messenger drew his arm out of his cloak; on it was a Battle-City type duel disk. "You are not to mess in the affairs of that you do not understand. I challenge you and when I win, your deck will be destroyed."

"Excuse me," said Jake, "I'm not accepting ANY type of challenge that puts my deck on the—"

Suddenly, the Messenger pulled a black amulet out of his pocket and it was surrounded by an evil aura. A wave of dark energy surrounded the office and enclosed all three of the occupants in an oval ring of black energy.

"What the…" said Jake looking around.

"Weird…" thought Seto, "this looks similar to the Ring of Orichalcos from a few years back. I wonder…"

"What the crud's going on?" Jake yelled at the Messenger.

"My amulet was blessed by my Lord Saar Mok-Dell, the One gifted the Cursed One himself!" said the Messenger, "It prevents anyone from leaving the entrapment until a duel is fought and finished.

Jake grit his teeth. This was way out of his league. Dark rings, Messengers, something called a Cursed One. This was too much for him to understand, but he did know one thing…

Jake reached for his Deck Pouch on his hip. He opened it and then realized something.

He left his duel disk in the car outside. Jake's shoulders drooped in self disappointment.

"Think fast," said Seto, he then threw his personal disk to Jake. Jake caught it and held it in his hands.

"Woah," said Jake holding the sleek, lightweight duel disk.

"Show me a good match," said Seto sitting in his desk chair. Jake nodded and put his deck into the duel disk.

"Duel," the two said simultaneously.

**Jake: 4000**

**Mess.: 4000**

"I'll start," said Jake, "I summon my Horus, the Black Flame Dragon LV 4 (1600/1000) to the field!"

A hologram of a waist-high, silvery, bird-like dragon appeared in front of Jake. It turned its head and gave a small squeak at Jake.

"Yeah, good to see you too," said Jake, "Lets take this guy!" The dragon gave a small roar and faced forward.

"Next, I'll set a face-down card and end my turn." Said Jake as a hologram of a face-down card appeared next to his feet.

"My turn," Said the Messenger, "I play me Remove Trap spell card. It allows me to view your face-down and, if it is a trap, destroy it." The face-down card flipped up to reveal a Magical Cylinder trap card. It was immediately destroyed.

"Next I will discard a card in my hand in order to use my monster's ability," said the Messenger, placing a card of his own in the Graveyard. "Now I can Special Summon my The Tricky (2000/1200)!"

A hologram of a metallic humanoid with a blue cape and a question mark symbol on his chest appeared.

"Now, I'm going to repeat that move by discarding another card from my hand to summon another The Tricky!" The Messenger summoned another metallic monster from his hand.

"Oh, boy," said Jake surprised. Horus opened its beak and gave a small, scared chirp.

"Now, monsters, attack him!" yelled the Messenger. The two Trickys rushed forward and one grabbed Horus with one hand and his other sprouted a curved blade. In a single swipe, Horus was destroyed.

**Jake: 3600**

**Mess.: 4000**

Then, as Horus faded, the other monster attacked Jake directly, with another swipe of a curved blade.

**Jake: 1600**

**Mess.: 4000**

"Hm," thought Seto, "This kid's in a mess. Like to see if he can pull out of it."

"My turn," said Jake drawing, "Now I'll activate my Pot of Greed. It allows me to draw two extra cards from my deck." Jake drew his cards. "Now I'll summon my Silent Swordsman LV 3! (1000/1000)"

A young monster, wearing a blue coat and silver armor appeared. In his hands was a large sword, bigger than he was.

"Next, I'll activate my Level Up!," said Jake, "It transforms my monster into its next form, Silent Swordsman LV 5! (2300/1000)"

The monster immediately grew taller and his cloak grew longer as well. As he swung his sword, it immediately grew larger. The Swordsman immediately turned, grinned, and gave Jake a Thumbs-up sign. Jake grinned back and the Swordsman turned back towards the enemy.

"Now, I'll activate my Level Modulation," said Jake, "It allows me to bring back a monster from my Graveyard and you are allowed to draw two cards." The Messenger drew his cards while Jake brought back his Horus dragon in Defense Mode. "Now, I'll attack with my Silent Swordsman!"

The warrior brought his sword up and slashed at one of the Trickys. It dissolved and the Messenger took damage.

**Jake: 1600**

**Mess.: 3700**

"Now, I'll place a new card face-down," said Jake, "and end my turn."

"Fine," said the Messenger drawing, "I'll activate my spell card Tricky's Magic 4. I sacrifice my The Tricky and it turns all of your monsters into Tricky tokens. (2000/1200) They are powerful, but unable to attack and they are summoned in defense mode."

Horus and the Swordsman immediately turned into coins with question mark symbols on them.

"Next, I will discard another card from my hand in order to summon my final The Tricky, and then I will summon my Gemini Elf (1900/900) in attack mode."

Another metallic monster was summoned and then twin, elven monsters appeared.

"Now, attack!" The monsters wasted the two token monsters. Luckily, since they were in defense mode, Jake took no damage.

"Aw, man," Jake thought, "Not good."

"My turn," said Jake, "I summon my Armed Dragon LV 3 (1200/900). Then I'll activate my Level Up! and it'll become Armed Dragon LV 5 (2400/1700)"

A small dragon with orange skin pieces of armor on it. It then roared and it became larger, red-skinned and carried a spiked mace.

"Next, I'll play my face-down card Ultimate Offering, It allows me to Special summon one more monster from my hand in exchange for 500 Life Points.

**Jake: 1100**

**Mess.: 3700**

"I summon my Silent Magician LV 4 (1000/1000)!" said Jake as a young girl magician wearing a white robe, holding a staff, and wearing a pointed hat. "Now, I'll activate my Spell card Graceful Charity! It allows me to draw three cards as long as I discard two after I draw." Jake drew his cards and discarded two.

"Now that I've drawn, my Magician's ability. She gains 500 attack points every time I draw."

**Silent Magician LV 4**: (1500/1000)

"Now I'll discard two monsters from my hand with attack points higher than your monster's points and they are destroyed thanks to Armed Dragon's ability."

The dragon opened its mouth wide and breathed heavily inward. A blast of intense fire burst from his mouth and consumed the Messenger's monsters. They were immediately destroyed.

"Now I'll attack you directly," yelled Jake, his two monsters rushed forward.

The Dragon raised his mace high and brought it down.

**Jake: 1100**

**Mess.: 1300**

Then as the Messenger grit his teeth, the Silent Magician came from behind him and finished him off.

**Jake: 1100**

**Mess.: 0000**

* * *

"Ah," said the Messenger stumbling backwards as the dark ring faded. Then he regained his composure and stood in front of Jake and Seto. "Understand this," he said, "If you continue your quest to face my master, you will be faced by the most powerful of his servants. My purpose is done."

He turned to Seto's window and

Ran

Straight

For

It!

* * *

Later, after the body of the Messenger was retrieved, Mr. Kaiba had told Jake about some… accomplices of his in Epypt who might be able to help. They were a family of ex-gravekeepers called the Ishtars…

After a few more minutes, Ishizu breathed deeply and the crystal set itself down on the table.

Jake, Odion, and Marik turned to face her as she walked towards them, crystal in hand.

"I am sorry, Jake," she said, "But things are worse than I thought."

"What?" asked Jake.

* * *

Ellie was walking back to her dorm next to the Academy's lake when she failed to notice a small figure was watching her.

The figure, hiding in the shadows, was speaking to a black crystal that was in its hand.

"I have found her, Master," said the light, airy voice of the figure. The figure grinned wolfishly, watching its prey enter the dorm.

* * *

Well, things are heating up. Saar-Kel's movements are on the rise and Jake's story seems to be on the way to converging with Ellie's again. Watch for future chapters.

-Copper Thrice


	4. Chapter 4: Cave Match

Level Rising: Dark Times

By Copper Thrice

Hi, readers! It's been a while since I first wrote (took a little down time), but now I'm back with a vengeance! By the way, just the Yu-Gi-Oh series, I'm going to be inventing some cards for the sake of the story. Only a few though, you'll be seeing one in this chapter. Enjoy!

--Copper Thrice

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Ellie Watcher sighed as she entered her Obelisk Blue room. It had been a long day at school. Less Dueling and more Dueling-in-Concept than usual.

Her apartment was a large and could've been confused for some five-star hotel room. It was a bit extravagant, but she earned it through her almost two years at Duel Academy.

Ellie slipped off her duel disk and sat down on her bed, gazing outside the window at the lake which bordered the Girls Dorm. She breathed a heavy sigh as she saw the moonlight glaze the lake.

It was a full moon tonight.

In fact, it was bright enough to see anything outside…

Or anyone.

Ellie stood and walked towards the wide window in her dorm room. She squinted in order to use the moon's light to see someone on the docks beside the dorm. Her eyes widened as she recognized the figure on the docks.

Tall, lanky body… Long, bluish hair… White robes…

It was Saartorius!

"What's he doing here?" Ellie wondered in shock, "I thought he left the Academy after Jaeden Yuki beat him in the GX tournament."

Saartorius turned and seemed to look up at Ellie. She could imagine his cruel smile and maddened eyes. It was something she had not forgotten since he had taken control of her during the Tournament.

Ellie clenched her teeth and balled her fists as the form of Saartorius walked off the docks and into the nearby forest.

"He's mine!" Ellie thought out loud, "I know he's up to something and I'll find out what it is!"

Ellie grabbed her disk and slipped it on, placing her deck in the deck slot which closed around it.

She rushed to the door and snuck downstairs, hoping she could catch up to the blue-haired menace.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Five hours earlier…

It was mid-afternoon at the Duel Academy Arena and Jaeden Yuki was on the verge of his tenth victory in a row.

Completely dressed in an Obelisk Blue uniform, Jaeden stood with his arms crossed. His old, friendly smile had been replaced by an angry glare that seemed foreign on his face.

His opponent, Brandon Trent, was an Obelisk Blue and was constantly looking at the cards in his hand. He was trying to come up with a strategy to save his skin.

So far, he had nothing.

His side of the field was empty and Jaeden's Elemental Hero: Bladedge (2600/1800) was guarding Jaeden's Life Points. There was also a face down card at Jaeden's feet.

**JY: 4000**

**BT: 200**

Brandon finally decide on a move.

"I place a monster face down in defense," said Brandon worriedly, "Your turn."

"Finally," Jaeden snapped.

As Jaeden drew a card form his deck, the crowd that sat watching the duel sighed. They knew this match was already over.

Alexis sat in the front row reserved for Obelisk Blue students and looked at Jaeden with a mixture of dissatisfaction and worry. She had just watched her boyfriend completely decimate the nine other duelists. Jaeden didn't just crush their Life Points…

He crushed their spirits, too.

"Now, Bladegde," yell Jaeden, "Destroy his monster!" The golden armored warrior obeyed and charged, blades extended, at the face down monster.

The form of a blue-suited Battle Warrior (700/1000) appeared for a moment and then was cut to shreds.

"By the way," Jaeden said in a matter-of-fact tone, "My monster's special ability allows it to do damage equal to your monsters defense minus my monster's attack."

Sure enough, a shockwave exploded from where the Battle Warrior was destroyed. It hit Brandon and his Life Points sank.

The crowd grew disappointed. They had been hoping that during at least one of Jaeden's duels he would lose. Instead of the school hero he once was, he was now someone everyone wanted to see suffer the defeat he deserved.

Alexis stood up and watched Jaeden as he left the arena, not even looking at his fallen opponent. She sighed deeply and then turned to the exit.

It was time she had a little talk with Jaeden.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Present time…

Ellie ran through the forests of the Academy grounds. She only saw glances of Saartorius, but it was enough for her to keep on his trail.

It was like he was daring her to follow him.

Good, Ellie thought, I like dares.

For almost half-an-hour, Ellie raced after Saartorius, until she came upon the mountain ion the center of the island.

Ellie looked around.

"Where did he go," She thought aloud. Then she saw a glimpse of white fade into a small cave at the roots of the mountain. She grinned and thought, heh, he's trapped in there.

Ellie ran into the cave and wandered through its darkness.

"Oh, _GREAT _idea, Ellie," she said sarcastically, "Follow the bad guy into the spooky cave. That's a stroke of genius…"

Then she saw a light a few hundred paces away. She ran towards it and came out in a large hollow inside the cave. It was humongous, about the size of the Duel Academy Arena!

Ellie then saw something-- Someone, actually – that she did not expect. A little girl in a white dress stood at the far end of the cave. In her hands she cupped a small, blace crystal on a necklace and on her arm was a KaibaCorp duel disk.

She looked up at Ellie and giggled. "Hello, Eleanor," she said with her innocent voice, "Good to see you made it."

Ellie was instantly on edge, when people usually called her by her real name it ticked her off. However, something seemed a little off about thin girl. It made Ellie uneasy.

Ellie finally just shook her head and took a few steps towards the girl.

"Hey, there," said Ellie in a calm voice, "Have you seen a man with long blue hair, and a white outfit, run through here?"

The girl giggled again. Ellie seemed taken aback. "What's so funny," she finally asked.

"You, Eleanor," the little girl chirped, "The fact that you could be fooled by such a low-class illusion is proof that you must not be too smart. Oh,well…"

"Huh," said Ellie not sure on how to take the insult or the information.

The girl held up the black pendant and it began to glow.

Suddenly, a black ring formed around Ellie and the girl. Dark energy seemed to pour out of the circle itself. Ellie tried to touch the tall wall of black energy that spread up from the circle and her hand was shocked.

"What the…" Ellie said in surprise.

"Now, here's the plan, Eleanor," said the girl, "My name is Salma Bebedora. My job is to do the bidding of my Dark Lord and he bids me to defeat you and take your soul hostage." Salma gave an evil grin, "Then you will be used as bait for your Jake Parion friend."

Ellie blinked and stared at Salma for a few seconds. She knew Jake was out somewhere in the world doing something, but he must have managed to tick somebody off in doing so.

Finally, Ellie just started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Salma asked furiously.

"Yeesh, don't throw a temper tantrum, kid," Ellie said finally calming down. "But…"

Ellie raised her left arm and activated her duel disk. "Do you seriously think you can just waltz up to me and take me hostage? Seriously, you must have issues. By the way… If I'm serving as bait… Why did you tell me your whole 'Evil Plan'?" Ellie chuckled a bit more.

"Shut up!" Salma yelled as she activated her duel disk.

**EW: 4000**

**SB: 4000**

"I'll go first!" Salma said, still a little mad. Then she smiled as she saw her hand. "It seems I drew the perrrrr-fect hand. Now watch as I use my Doriado's Blessing!"

Salma played a ritual spell and a white portal appeared in front of her.

"I'll now sacrifice two monsters form my hand to summon my Elemental Mistress Doriado (1200/1400)!

A figure of a girl in a white dress and a red headdress appeared. She seemed young and in the middle of some prayer.

"O-o-o-o-kay…" said Ellie, "What's up with the white-nun-thing."

"Just watch," Salma chirped innocently, "Now I play Soul of the Duelist on Doriado!"

"What?" Ellie asked. She hadn't heard of that card before.

Suddenly, the Elemental Mistress disappeared and turned into white shimmers in the air. The shimmers flowed around Salma and blinding light surrounded her. Ellie had to shield her eyes.

When the light faded, Salma was clothed exactly like Doraida, except for her duel disk which now had a white aura around it.

What on Earth? Ellie thought, then her duel disk shot out a hologram to show… Salma's attack and defense points?

Elementa Mistress Salma SD (2200/2400) said the hologram.

"Now, Eleanor," said Salma in her "innocent" voice. "Prepare to lose."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, there ya go! Sorry it took so long to get back to writing. Oh, and if you want to know what "Soul of the Duelist" can do, tune in for my next chapter.

Later,

Copper Thrice


	5. Announcement

Level Rising: Dark Times -- Announcement

Level Rising: Dark Times -- Announcement

By Copper Thrice

Well, readers, it's been a long haul since the first Level Rising chapter and I'm glad for all the views, but you see…

I've kinda hit a wall as to how I should continue Dark Times.

So, I'm going to write a new story which will transfer the character Jake Parion and his Level monsters over into Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's. Since I haven't seen too much of 5D's don't expect a load of cameos, but it will be set in Neo Duel Academy and Neo Domino City.

Dark Times original plot will become a sub-story that will unfold in Jake's memory.

For those of you who haven't seen 5D's don't worry, I'll ease ya into the entertaining yet ridiculous plot. All you really need to know is that duels take place on high speed motorbikes and in a dismal future setting. For more info, check Wikipedia.

Here's a sample of the future fanfic currently known as Level Rising: Finality.

--

* * *

On Neo Duel Academy, Jake woke from his troubled sleep and got changed into his uniform.

Placing his Deck in his Duel Disk, he walked out to the Duel Ring.

At the coliseum-like arena, he found some students gathering around what looked like a motorcycle attached to a hologram system and Disk port. After listening to the students' conversation about the bike, he finally spoke.

"So, let me get this straight," Jake said examining at the D-Wheel, "You guys play Duel Monsters on motorbikes while going a hundred miles per hour?"

"Well," said one girl with a Ra Yellow uniform, "That's not exactly right."

Jake sighed with relief inwardly.

"Yeah," said a male Ra student, "Usually we average at a good two-hundred miles per hour. That's when things get reeeaaalllly interesting." Some kids started laughing.

"Ah, great," said the materializing duel spirit of Mystic Swordsman, "'High Speed Duels'? Yeesh. Pegasus would be rolling in his grave… I mean… seriously!"

"Yeah, I know," Jake muttered to the small swordsman on his shoulder, "It sounds stupid."

"Hey, what was dat?!" said a muscled Ra student appearing into the arena. He wore a sleeveless blazer and a headband which had a lion picture on its center. He also had a definite aura of authority about him. "Whatcha say, new kid?"

"Man, he heard that?" asked Mystic Swordsman, "Guy's got ears like a bat. Looks like the personality of a bulldog too." Jake shot him a look. "What, he can't see me, let alone hear me. What's he gonna do?"

"Quit lookin over yer shoulder and look a me, new kid!" said the student. "The name's Ryan Leo and I won't let some punk insult my game."

Jake sighed, even in the future he was surrounded by Duel Monster Nutcases. These people need a hobby… One that doesn't involve card games and/or motorbikes.

"I challenge you to a duel," said Ryan.

Big surprise, Jake thought.

"I win and you polish my bike and disk fo the rest of da semester," Said Leo crossing his arms, "You win an I won't get in yo face no more."

"This guy needs less Duel Theory and more grammar classes," said the Mystic Swordsman mimicking Ryan's pose. Jake grinned at the Duel Spirit.

"Alright, I accept," Jake said activating his Duel Disk. Then he saw Ryan walking away from him… And towards the D-Wheel garage. "Wa-wait! Jake yelled, "Where are you going?"

"Ta get a D-Wheel, ya moron," Said Leo, "I'll show ya how good my deck is…" Here he gave a toothy grin, "On the race track."

Crap, Jake thought.

"What's the issue, Jake?" the Mystic Swordsman asked.

"I, uh…" Jake whispered, "I, uhm…" Jake started getting shaky and a knot tid in his stomach.

"Spit it out, man," said the Swordman, "What's da problem?"

Jake sighed, "I… never learned how to ride a bike…"

To be continued…

--

* * *

Well, there ya have it. I'll get back to work on my series now, thanks to subscribers for waiting.

Later,

Copper Thrice

P.S.

Suggestions for my story would be cool. No guarantee that I would follow 'em though.


	6. Chapter 5: Darkness

Level Rising: Dark Times

Level Rising: Dark Times

By: Copper Thrice

Well readers, I've decided to finish out this little fic and finish out the Jaeden and Ellie storylines. I want to focus more on Jake's story. So, this chap will set up Level Rising: Finality. Think of it as kind of a prologue.

First, let's check in on Ellie's duel.

--

**EW: 4000**

**SB: 4000**

The robed Salma giggled once more and it was really starting to tick off Ellie.

"Hey, what did that card do?" Ellie yelled.

"Well, if you must know," said Salma, "Soul of the Duelist does quite a few things. One, It fuses me to my monster and gives it a 1000 attack point bonus. Two, I can scrap that bonus and gain a special ability in exchange. I'll do just that."

Salma's power level rose and fell back to normal.

"The only downside to this card is if the monster I'm bonded with is destroyed I automatically lose," Salma grinned. "But my new ability makes it so that I can't be destroyed, but spells that require tributing can still work on me."

"What?" said a very confused Ellie. Salma laughed loudly.

"Don't worry Eleanor," crooned Salma, "You'll see soon enough. I end my turn by putting two cards facedown."

"Alright…" said Ellie drawing.

Hmmmm, thought Ellie, I may not be able to destroy her monster, but I can still do damage. Ellie grinned. And she didn't say anything about being removed from the game. Oh, yeah. Ellie pulled a card from her hand, grinning. This'll work.

"I summon my D.D. Warrior Lady!(1500/1600)" Ellie proclaimed. A blonde woman in light armor appeared in front of Ellie. "Now she'll attack. Get ready to go, Salma, cause when my monster fights an enemy monster, she can remove it from the game! Go!"

"I activate my trap: Spiritual Wind Art – Miyabi." Said Salma as a trap was revealed. "It allows me to take one monster on your side of the field and pt it on the bottem of your deck."

A torrent of wind shot out form the card and blew the Warrior Lady back towards Ellie where she returned to card form and Ellie, grudgingly, put it back in her deck.

It was then that Ellie realized something.

"Wait, Spiritual Arts Cards require a tribute of a certain monster element to be used. I know Elemental Mistress Doriado is a four-element monster, but shouldn't she have been sacrificed to use that card?" Ellie asked.

"Usually, that is the case," said Salma smiling, "But when I fused with my card and gave up my attack bonus, I made it so that I can't be sent to the graveyard, but can still be tributed. Weren't you paying attention earlier? Now let's see my other trap card shall we?"

Salma held out her hand and her other trap rose, Spiritual Fire Art – Kurenai.

"This allows me to do damage to you equal to my tributed monster's attack points." Salma said innocently, "Here you go!"

A pillar of fire came out of the trap and engulfed Ellie.

**EW: 2800**

**SB: 4000**

Ellie sighed and ended her turn.

"My move!" yelled Salma enthusiastically. "Now I'll attack you directly!"

Salma rushed forward with great speed and delivered a kick to Ellie's stomach lauching her to the ground.

"What did you…" Ellie stammered catching her breath.

"Well, I'm not a hologram am I? I attacked you, so you felt it." Salma laughed. "Don't worry, This'll al be over soon. Look at your Life Points."

Ellie watched with clenched teeth as her points dropped again.

**EW: 1600**

**SB: 4000**

"I'll set two more cards face-down and end my turn." Salma then giggled relentlessly.

"That laughing…" Muttered Ellie getting back on her feet, "I'm gonna put a stop to it!"

Ellie began to draw.

"Uh uh uh," said Salma waving a finger, "I activate my traps." Two cards flipped up.

"My Spiritual Fire Art – Kurenai and Spiritual Water Art – Yoi. You take more damage with Kurenai and my Yoi discards a card of my choice from your hand."

**EW: 0400**

**SB: 4000**

"I'll discard… your D.D. Assailant!" yelled Salma after looking at a projection of Ellie's hand.

Ellie grunted as she put the card in her graveyard.

"I am NOT going to lose to this little girl." Ellie muttered. Then she looked at the card she drew and took a deep breath.

I have to trust my deck, Ellie thought, Jake's faith paid off, so why not mine…

"I activate my Card Destruction!" Ellie said activating her spell card. "Now we discard our hands and draw five new cards!"

As the Duelists followed the card's instructions, Salma shook her head.

"Now, Eleanor…" she crooned, "How is this gonna help you… I bet if you had just used the cards you had as a Society Duelist you might pose some threat, but--"

Ellie started laughing.

"What's so funny?" pouted Salma.

"You see if you had just challenged me yourself," Ellie began with a smile. "I might have used my normal cards and you might have won."

"What?" Salma responded.

"You see…" Ellie put her hand on her Duel Disk. "I never wanted to use those cards again after Jake helped me, but when I thought I had the opportunity to beat Saartorius with his own cards. Heh heh, I couldn't resist!"

"You mean you--" stammered Salma.

"Yep, I activate my Shinato's Ark ritual spell!" Ellie discarded a high level monster from her hand and summoned her new creature of light. "Now I summon my Shinato, King of a Higher Plane!" (3300/3000)

A robed, god-like figure with great wings appeared and filled the room with light.

Salma backed down and thought fast.

It won't matter, right? Even if she attacks I'll have plenty of LP left. I'll scramble her next turn.

"Now I'll play Monster Reborn to Special Summon the monster I just discarded, Gilford the Lightning!" (2800/1400) A large warrior carrying a great sword and wearing an orange cape appeared.

Salma's mouth opened wide.

"Now to top it off!" Ellie pulled one of her last cards out of her hand. I summon my Hoshiningen!" (500/700) A small star-like monster with a grinning face appeared between Ellie monsters. It paled in comparison to its allies. In fact t looked (and was) downright pathetic.

"Why'd you summon that thing?" yelled Salma worriedly.

"It's a special little monster that boosts all Light element monsters attack by 500 points. Now…" Ellie crossed her arms. "Eat this."

The small star monster closed its eyes in concentration and its body gave off a pure light that blinded Salma and made Ellie squint.

Hoshiningen: 1000/700

Gilford: 3300/1400

Shinato: 3800/ 3000

"No, wait," stammered Salma, "That means…"

"Yep, you're done," said a grinning Ellie, "Now, Shinato, Gilford, ATTACK!"

The swordsman and angel rushed forward and attacked.

Shinato went first and threw a charged burst of light magic at Salma. She screamed and was thrown high up into the cave because of the inpact.

She opened her eyes as she was airborn…

Only to see Gilford with his sword raised high.

Gilford gave a deep yell and brought his blade down sending Elemental Mistress Salma rocketing back to the cave floor.

**EW: 0400**

**SB: 0000**

The holograms of Ellie's monsters and Salma's monster form faded and so did the black circle that surrounded the two duelists.

"Hey, you all right?" asked Ellie looking at the form of Salma lying in the crater made by her impact.

Slowly, Salma rose up, her black amulet dangling from her neck. She was muttering words Ellie thought girls her age shouldn't know.

Suddenly, her pendant glowed and a voice filled the room. It was a calm, authoritative voice that commanded respect and Salma's expression turned to horror as it spoke.

"Salma…" said the voice, "It seems you have failed us."

"It's not my fault, Lord Oracle!" Salma yelled at the black stone. Ellie backed away from the girl, intently listening to the voice. "Please, don't take away my Blessing!"

Her what? Ellie wondered.

"I'm afraid that…" said the Dark Oracle's voice dripping with false concern, "That the Master has no need for failures. I shall take back your Blessing of Everlasting Life."

"No!" Salma screamed with trembling lips. "No, No, No, No, No!"

She looked at her hand and it aged rapidly. First, it shrank, became covered in scaly, pale skin. Then liver spots formed and the bones became brittle.

Ellie could hear the cracking of bone from where she stood. Her mouth dropped in shock as the rest of Salma's body aged. Her beauty and youth flowing out of her like sand through her fingers.

"It's was such a simple task," the Oracle almost whispered. "Defeat a child in a card game and reign by my master's side eternally." The Oracle sighed, "You only have yourself to blame."

Salma gave one last glace at Ellie.

Ellie gasped as she saw the pain and terror in her eyes.

Then, almost as quickly as it started…

Salma turned to dust.

Aged to death.

Ellie froze where she stood and stayed there for quite a while.

Slowly, she walked over to where Salma once stood.

All that remained was her dress, her duel disk, and the black gem which promptly disintegrated.

Ellie knelt by the dress in silence. She felt a great deal of pity for the woman, even though she had tried to capture Ellie. Ellie reached over to the duel disk and plucked out a card.

Ellie held out the card, Soul of the Duelist in front of her.

Shepherd will want to see this, she thought as she began to return to the cave's entrance.

As she left the cave, she looked out over the forest and the ocean beyond it.

Laying a hand on her right arm, she wondered about Jake.

Salma had tried to capture Ellie to get to Jake.

What had Jake gotten himself into?

--

As Ellie was worrying about Jake, Jaeden was waiting at the Duel Academy Docks for Alexis.

She had asked Jaeden to meet him here, but didn't say why.

Jaeden sighed and recounted what happened when he had gotten back to the Academy after the Society incident.

When he returned, he found out that Cyrus had left to go find his brother, so the year didn't start out so well. Jaeden still hung out with Alexis, Hassleberry, Chazz and Bastion, though.

Then, as the year continued, Chazz received news that he had to return home since his brothers were in prison for some crime or another. To be honest, he wasn't missed much.

Then Hassleberry had to return home because he got drafted. He was actually a little older than his friends thought.

After that, Bastion received news that a famous scientist wanted Bastion to be his protégé. Bastion almost stayed, but eventually left.

After that, Jaeden and Alexis, just, sorta fell in together. She was the last friend that Jaeden had. He lost most of his old cheerful spirit and found less of a thrill to dueling.

Life just wasn't the same.

Jaeden had even thrown away many of his old cards, just because he thought of them as "Too Weak".

Alexis stood behind a pier building. She had actually been there for a while, thinking up on how to help Jaeden.

She finally came up with something. It was risky, but it should work. She walked out to meet Jaeden.

"Hey," said Jaeden with a rare smile, "How's it… What's wrong?"

Alexis opened her mouth to take a breath and began to talk.

--

Minutes later on the pier Jaeden was alone, cradling his head in his left hand and a card Alexis had given him in the other.

"She dumped me?!" Jaeden said almost yelling, "How could she just…" Jaeden almost through the card Aexis gave him in rage, but then stopped and looked at it.

Winged Kurriboh

This card's duel spirit had been with Jaeden since he entered the academy. The little fuzzball made him laugh, encouraged him… even stayed with Jaeden until…

Jaeden looked down at his Obelisk Blue Blazer.

I get it… He thought. This is what Alexis, Shepherd, and Kurriboh tried to teach me.

Jake took off his Obelisk uniform and held it in his hand.

He'd lost his love of dueling, he'd forgotten why he went to the academy in the first place.

Jaeden looked out over the ocean.

If his friends could see him now… Jaeden wouldn't blame him if they'd leave him in the dust too. He always looked back on his duels in sorrow instead of looking to the future in hope.

A giant grin grew across his face.

"It's time I go," Jaeden said aloud, "I'll come back, but if I stay here, people will just treat me like I did them." Then something caught Jaeden's eye, "What the…" Jake turned to see a small, wooden boat, seemingly without pilot, drift towards him

Just then, a familiar face popped out of the boat and flew over to Jaeden.

"Winged Kurriboh!" Jaeden yelled as the mass of fur and wings flew over to sit on Jaeden's shoulder. "Good ta see ya, buddy! Looks like ya never left after all!"

"None of us really did, Jaeden," said a voice from behind Jaeden. He turned to see Alexis holding a bundle of clothes and a pack.

"You, see," Alexis began as she walked up to Jaeden. He looked at the clothes and recognized his old Slifer Red uniform. "None of us ever left. Not Cyrus, not Zane, not even Chazz. We all stick with you."

"Huh, really," Jaeden cupped a hand over his eyes and looked around, "Where, I don't see em'." The two shared a laugh. It was a bad joke, but the first Jaeden made in a while.

"You know what I mean," Said Alexis hading Jaeden the pack. "That should get you started." She took a deep breath, "Just come back, okay."

Jaeden stepped into the boat and smirked at Alexis, "Hey, don't worry about it. Jake promised he'd come back and I'll do the same! See ya!"

With Kurriboh on his shoulder and Alexis waving goodbye, Jaeden set off.

--

Near the center of Rome, near evening, a motorcycle with two riders drove up to the ancient Roman Coliseum.

Odion stopped and let Jake off.

Jake removed his helmet and walked towards the entrance.

"Sure you don't require help?" Odion said to Jake. Jake shook his head.

"The Dark Oracle asked for me alone," Jake said firmly, "I don't want anyone else involved."

Jake took a few more steps, looked own, and faced Odion.

"Listen, uh…" he began, "If I don't make it back…" Jake sighed, "Tell Ellie Watcher that I'm sorry. That I couldn't keep all of my promises."

Odion nodded and drove off into Rome's streets.

As the howl of the bike faded, Jake took a deep breath and entered the arena.

Over the pit that was the original coliseum, a pair of intersecting bridges had been constructed to give visitors a view of the inner workings of the arena. Jake walked across on walkway, Duel Crystal in one hand, deck on his belt.

In the opposite direction, a man wearing a long, black robe with an eye on its drawn forward hood approached Jake.

This was the Dark Oracle.

He was seemingly unimpressive, but Jake knew that this guy had been the source of a lot of grief for him.

The two stared each other down for a while, and then Jake spoke.

"Know what?" Jake said while crossing his arms, "I expected a really dramatic entrance from you."

The Oracle grunted, "I waste no time on such frivolity."

Jake could feel it in the man's voice. This guy had power, and knew it.

"Still kinda disappointed," Jake looked around, "Still expecting the Saar Kell or the Charles bros to show up, though."

"Saar Kell is but one of my master's pawns," The Oracle pulled down his hood to reveal a young man with snow white hair and a pointed face. "As for Yin and Yang… I assure you that their ends were quick and painless."

Jake's eyes widened for a bit, but then he returned his focus.

"I win and you and your flunkys disappear, got it?" Jake said firmly, "I'm tired of people like you stepping on other people. Not to mention I'm tired of sleeping in caves and getting shot at."

Jake slapped the Duel Crystal on his left wrist and it changed into a Duel Disk form.

"Fine, but when you lose…" The Dark Oracle began, unveiling his Duel Disk, "You will be the one to disappear… Forever!"

**DUEL!**

**Oracle: 4000**

**Jake: 4000**

"I'll go first!" yelled the Oracle, "I summon my **Newdoria** (1200/800) in attack mode!"

A humanoid, fiendish monster with long arms and very little armor appeared in the air above the arena floor.

"Then I set two cards face down and end my turn." The Dark Oracle slid two cards into his disk and two holo-cards appeared by his feet.

"My turn," said Jake as he drew.

Alright, he thought as he looked at his hand of cards. This is great! I'll beat him really easily with… Woah… Never thought I'd get used to dueling for my life.

"I summon my **Armed Dragon LV 3** (1200/900) to the field!" proclaimed Jake as not a hologram, but a live, yellow, armored dragon was summoned to the field.

It turned and chirped at Jake, swishing its tail happily.

"Good to see you too," Jake grinned at the monster, "Wanna kick some bad guy butt?"

The dragon lifted its head and gave a roar that surprised Jake.

"I'll take that as a yes," Jake said.

"Amazing," stammered the Oracle with a look of astonishment on his face. "The Crystal can truly give life to spirits!" He smiled greedily. "When I win I'll take it and use its power to revive my master. The world will be his and I will stand by his side!"

"Hate to tell ya," Jake began as he pulled out another few cards from his hand. "But there is no way I'm letting you win!" Jake activated a pair of cards. "I use both of the Level Up cards in my hand! This takes Armed Dragon from level 3—"

The dragon glowed and grew in size until he almost took up Jake's side of the Arena. It's scales turned red, its armor shined and grew with the body. Its tiny roar faded, then grew so loud Jake wouldn't be surprised if everybody on the block woke up.

"To level 7!" (2800/1000) Jake yelled as his dragon extended its claws and clenched its teeth.

Even with creatures this powerful, the Oracle thought. The Crystal can sustain it… Remarkable.

"Now for the finale!" Jake pulled a new card from his hand, "I discard a card from my hand to level up my dragon again!"

The Oracle's eyes widened. Again!?

"Feast your eyes on--" Jake replaced his level 7 card for a new one. Armed Dragon stood on its hind legs and its muscles grew. Its height soared. Finally, it let out a roar that shattered the windows on nearby buildings.

Jake held his ears, "Yeesh, not so loud!" the dragon turned its silvery armored head in apology.

"Alright, meet Armed Dragon LV 10!(3000/2000)" Jake once again faced the Oracle who stared up at the Dragon in awe.

"Now his special ability comes into play and he can destroy all monsters on my opponent's side of the field when he's summoned!" Jake pointed at Newdoria. "You know what to do, partner."

The dragon nodded and brought his tail around, shifting it into a holographic form, sweeping away the fiend.

"Now, Armed Dragon--" Jake pointed at the Oracle. Then (after pausing for dramatic effect) spoke. "Sic em."

The Dragon breathed flames that surrounded, but did not scald the Oracle.

**Oracle: 1000**

**Jake: 4000**

"That's all the cards I got, your turn," Jake said trying to hold back the urge to jump up and down.

I gonna do it! He thought. I'm gonna beat the Dark Oracle and stop the Cursed One! I didn't do it alone either… Jake looked at his deck.

Images of his family, his monsters, The Ishtars, Odion, even Kaiba flooded into his mind.

I'm gonna win, he thought. And go to the academy.

An image of him standing on the bow of a Kaiba Corp boat heading to Duel Academy appeared in his mind. He saw hundreds of people standing on the docks waving and cheering him in. Ellie was a prominent figure in the crowd, standing on the closest dock and--  
Jake's Daydream was interrupted by slow, rhythmic clapping.

The Oracle was applauding Jake.

"Well done, well done," he said, "But the match isn't over. I draw." The Oracle regained his greedy smile. "I flip up my two trap cards, both are called Embodiment of Apophis! (1600/1800) They transform into two, four star creatures when activated."

Two soldiers who looked to be mostly like snakes appeared. They held wicked looking swords and hissed at Jake.

"Now I play Premature Burial!" The Oracle announced, "In exchange for 800 Life Points, I can revive a monster from my Graveyard. I choose Newdoria."

The fiend revived and the Oracle's points took a dive.

**Oracle: 0200**

**Jake: 4000**

"Now that I have three monsters, let me reacquaint you with an old friend." The Oracle grinned at Jake who stood confused.

"I'm sure the Charles Brothers introduces you a few years ago," The Oracle spoke as Jake's eyes widened.

"I sacrifice all of my monsters to summon… Dark Dreadroute! (4000/4000)" The Oracle yelled as he summoned his monster.

The arena quaked slightly and the sky grew dark. Jake watched horrified as a dark portal opened up beneath the bridge and black tendrils dragged the Oracle's monsters into the abyss below them.

A dull roar sounded from the depths.

"As you can see, Jake Parion," said the Oracle looking into the abyss, "Dark Dreadroute

is a creature much like your Level monsters. It has… substance…"

A green, bone-armored hand as large as a truck emerged from the portal. Soon the whole beast emerged, a green skinned demon with bone armor and spiraling horns emerged. Its essence spilled out into the arena and Jake could see his Dragon weaken from just being near the demon.

Armed Dragon Lv 10: 1500/1000

"No," Jake almost whispered. "No now. We're so close…"

"Now I activate Soul of the Duelist!" proclaimed the Oracle.

What, Jake thought. I've never heard of that spell.

"To keep its ability simple," The Dark Oracle began, "I will now fuse with Dark Dreadroute, obtaining power like you've never seen before!"

A flash of light covered the Oracle and his monster. Jake shielded his eyes and when the light faded he looked at the new creature in horror.

Dark Dreaded Oracle: 5000/5000

"Oh my…" Jake stammered looking at the Oracle

He was the same size as he had been; only now, instead of a black cloak he wore bone armor, with a bone helmet that bore curved horns.

"You're right to fear me, Jake Parion," the Oracle said holding out his left hand which still bore his Duel Disk, "I now activate my spell card Twin Swords of Flashing Light – Tryce." Two swords made of blue metal flashed into the Oracle's hands. "I admit that I'm not much for light-based cards, but being able to attack twice in the same turn in exchange for 500 attack points makes them kind of irresistible."

The Oracle then brought one of his swords back and unleashed a wave of evil energy at the Armed Dragon. It whimpered for about a second and vanished, it's power demolished. Jake felt the aftershock.

No more holograms, Jake thought. This guy's power is real.

**Oracle: 0200**

**Jake: 1000**

The Oracle walked lazily over towards Jake with a smirk on his face.

Sweating heavily, Jake backed away from him, only to trip and land on one knee.

He looked up only to see the Oracle's second sword.

"You have two options now," said the Oracle, "You've been a pleasant distraction for me so you can give me the Crystal, surrender, and go back to whatever meager place you came from. You can even keep your deck. The other option: You are defeated and you are thrown into the abyss. Now I don't want that Crystal damaged so…" The Oracle held out his hand.

Jake looked up at his choices: An empty hand and future torment, or a sword and instant death. Jake stood up slowly, pulled his deck out of his Crystal Disk, and put it in his belt.

He then looked at the Crystal on his arm sadly and whispered a phrase.

"I'm sorry, Ellie, everyone…" Jake quickly turned to the side of the bridge and prepared to jump.

"Don't boy!" yelled the Oracle, "You and the Crystal will be consumed by Darkness."

But Jake had already jumped.

The Oracle screamed.

Jake felt free for a moment as he fell into the air, like all his burdens had been lifted.

Then he fell…

And Darkness surrounded his body.

--

Miles away, Ellie woke with a start and looked around.

She was still in her dorm room, late at night, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Ellie almost yelled as she saw a large figure at the foot of her bed.

"Who-what-where," Ellie stammered, "Who are you and what are you doing here. This is my room!"

"Ellie Watcher," said Odion with a hint of sorrow in his voice. "I have a message from a friend of yours."

"What happened to Jake?" Ellie said, almost choking on the words.

--

It's not so bad, Jake thought as he drifted through pure Darkness.

Not too hot, not too cold…

Haven't felt hungry…

I guess I could rest here for a while…

Maybe a long while…

I mean… I did save the world… right?

--

Coming soon: **Level Rising: Finality**


End file.
